Bill Text: IL SR0005 | 2021-2022 | 102nd General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Thanks Senator Andy Manar for his years of service to the people of Illinois. Further wishes him the best in his future endeavors.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Passed) 2021-01-13 - Resolution Adopted [SR0005 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2021-SR0005-Introduced.html

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SENATE RESOLUTION
WHEREAS, State Senator Andy Manar will step away from the
Illinois Senate after eight years of dedicated service to the
people of the 48th District and a vigorous record of fighting
for children, working families, educators, small businesses,
and senior citizens; and
WHEREAS, Senator Manar, a lifelong resident of Bunker Hill
in southern Macoupin County, has served in elected public
office for nearly 24 years; he was first elected to the Bunker
Hill City Council at the age of 21 in 1997; he was elected
mayor of Bunker Hill in 2001; he later chaired the Macoupin
County Board until his election to the Illinois Senate in
2012; and
WHEREAS, Senator Manar's influences include his family and
his mentor, the late State Senator Vince Demuzio, who
instilled in him the deeply held beliefs that hard work, a
record of bipartisanship, and accountability to the people he
represents are among his most important achievements as an
elected official; and
WHEREAS, Senator Manar has been a champion for responsible
State budgets, collective bargaining, access to affordable
health care, teachers, and the LGBTQ community; he passed

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numerous laws that will have a lasting impact on Illinois
citizens for generations; and
WHEREAS, Arguably, Senator Manar's most defining
accomplishments were born out of his passion for and
commitment to public education in Illinois; in addition to
taking steps to address a dire teacher shortage in schools
throughout the State, he and a coalition of advocates
succeeded in reshaping the way Illinois schools are funded
after decades of worst-in-the-nation rankings for the State's
contributions to school funding; and
WHEREAS, Senator Manar spent countless hours negotiating a
plan to overhaul the school funding formula, holding town hall
meetings, talking with school superintendents, explaining
school funding to taxpayers, and making the case to newspaper
editorial boards throughout Illinois for why the State should
update its formula; and
WHEREAS, Senator Manar's efforts resulted in the
Evidence-Based Funding for Student Success Act becoming law in
2017, which meant that Illinois would put the most underfunded
school districts at the front of the line for State support and
make equity the foundation of public school funding for the
first time in a generation; and

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WHEREAS, Senator Manar has also been an ardent proponent
of affordable, accessible health care, particularly in rural
and underserved communities; he was instrumental in creating
the Critical Access Pharmacy program to help independent,
locally-owned pharmacies keep their doors open in the wake of
increasing financial pressure from corporations and pharmacy
benefit managers; he also passed the State's first regulation
of pharmacy benefit managers in Illinois; and
WHEREAS, Seeing that the exorbitant cost of insulin put
this life-saving drug out of reach for many Illinoisans,
Senator Manar built a statewide, grassroots campaign and
contended with predatory pharmaceutical companies, passing a
historic law to cap the out-of-pocket cost of insulin at $100
per month in Illinois; and
WHEREAS, Senator Manar made access to the ballot box
another priority, and he succeeded in passing an automatic
voter registration plan that has modernized State bureaucracy
and made it easier for Illinois citizens to register to vote
while also protecting the State from voter fraud; and
WHEREAS, Senator Manar served as chair of one of the
Illinois Senate's two budget committees during a period of
great political gridlock and financial uncertainty; he
delivered millions of dollars in State investments for

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schools, parks, libraries, and roads to communities in the
48th District; and
WHEREAS, Senator Manar directed State resources to
programs to help develop the 48th District's workforce,
including millions of dollars for the Work Skills Program at
Richland Community College in Decatur, for the South Macoupin
Consortium for Innovation and Career Pathways serving students
in six high schools, in funding for a new South Central
Illinois Regional Workforce Training and Innovation Center in
Litchfield, and for the Golden Apple Teacher Accelerators
program at Blackburn College in Carlinville; and
WHEREAS, Senator Manar has been recognized by numerous
organizations for his work in the Illinois Senate, including
receiving the Dawn Clark Netsch Straight Talk Award from the
Illinois Campaign for Political Reform, the Common Cause
Champion of Democracy, Rural Legislator of the Year from the
Illinois Hospital Association, the President's Award from the
Faith Coalition for the Common Good, the Vince Demuzio
Legislator of the Year Award from the Illinois Association of
Community Action Agencies, and the 2019 Illinois Education
Association Friend of Education Award and being named a 2016
Wall of Honor inductee at Bunker Hill High School; and
WHEREAS, Senator Manar's proudest achievement is his

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family, which includes his wife, Trista, and their three
children, Abbie, Will, and Ben; they will continue to reside
in Bunker Hill, three blocks from his childhood home; and
WHEREAS, The Senate's loss is certainly the Governor's
gain, as Senator Manar will join Governor JB Pritzker's
administration; he will no doubt remain a champion for working
families and downstate communities; therefore, be it
RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED SECOND GENERAL
ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we thank Senator Andy
Manar for his years of service to the people of Illinois and
wish him the best in his future endeavors; and be it further
RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
presented to Senator Manar as a symbol of our gratitude and
esteem.